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HONORS SELF- DESIGNED PROPOSAL

Complete this proposal prior to your experiences start date and upload it in the UHP Database
(https://webapps.uc.edu/uchonorsstudent). Create an experience (Add a new record) in the Tracking Project
tab and upload your proposal document as an attachment. The deadline for submitting proposals is the 5th of
each month (excluding July).
Proposals are intended to be well developed plans for your experience. However, experiences are exploratory in
nature, and we are flexible with changes throughout the experience. If your experience changes after receiving
approval on your proposal, contact your honors advisor to verify the changes still satisfy the requirements of an
honors experience.

Basic Information
Full Name:

Priya Thomas

Title of Project: Which Hospital is Right?

Thematic Area(s): Research
Expected Start Date: January 2016
Expected End Date: May 2016

GUIDELINES
1. Proposal submission timeline: Proposals should be submitted at least one month prior to the expected
start date of the experience. International experiences require at least two months notice. Contact your
honors advisor immediately for any exceptions.
2. Proposal length: While the quality of the proposal is most important, strong proposals are typically 3-4
pages single-spaced.
3. Proposal format: Please maintain the proposal format (e.g. headers, layout)
4. Time commitment: Experiences should consist of at least 75-90 hours of preparation, execution, and
reflection. This is approximately equivalent to the commitment of honors seminars and pre-approved
experiences.

REQUIREMENTS FOR INTERNATIONAL TRAVEL

All self-designed international travel experiences require two months notice and must be at least one week in
length. You will need to provide a detailed itinerary (dates, locations and activities). If participating in
independent travel (not with UC faculty, staff or student group), you must also fill out a Worldwide: Honors
Experience application via UC International.
Additionally, the Student Travel Policy restricts UC-sponsored travel to countries under a U.S. Department of
State Travel Warning. Those who wish to visit a country with a travel warning must seek an exemption through
UC International. Students traveling without a faculty or staff leader must individually request an exemption.
We cannot allow you to count this travel as an honors experience nor can we give you a grant without an
approved exemption.

1. Abstract
Briefly describe the experience. What makes this experience personally meaningful? What goals do you have for this
experience? What is your timeline for this experience?
*If you are proposing an international experience, provide an itinerary.
**If you are developing this experience from an existing opportunity (class with a study tour, campus organization, co-op,
etc.) that is not already an honors seminar or pre-approved experience, how will you differentiate your experience from
what is already required of other students?
I aspire to be a neurologist in the future. To me, choosing the right workplace is extremely important as it
determines how effective I execute my work. In order to perform optimally, I have to feel comfortable and significant. I
also have to meet my needs and work towards my goals as a future doctor. For this experience, my goal is to assess Good
Samaritan Hospital and Cincinnati Childrens Hospital for my compatibility and see which fits my pursuits better. I plan to
volunteer at both hospitals during the same period and figure out how each functions as a unit and gauge whether or not I
would like to be employed by either in the future. Additionally, I plan to make connections with the employees and fellow
volunteers to build a strong connection in the future. In Good Sam, I will volunteer in the Emergency Department. At
Cincinnati Childrens, I am stationed with cancer patients. By utilizing this volunteer opportunity, I will differentiate my
experience by paving my own path and leveraging UHP to guide me on my career pathway. Ideally, my timeline will
consist of at least 6 months of volunteering, hopefully starting next month in November. While everything is already set
up with Cincinnati Childrens, Good Sam still has to get back to me.
Advisor Feedback
Must Include:

Required Revisions:

Effective:

Brief description of the experience

Personal connection to the experience
Identified goals for the experience
Timeline from start to finish
*Itinerary (international experiences only)
**Explanation of differentiated experience
from what is required of other students

2. Experience Advisor
Identify an experience advisor and provide their contact information. Explain why you chose this person and how you
plan to utilize your advisor for this experience.
Note: Advisor(s) should have knowledge or expertise in an area related to the experience. Honors advisors, undergraduate
students, and family members cannot be experience advisors.
An experience advisor would be my supervisor at Good Samaritan Hospital, Reverend Lisa Bryan. She is the
volunteer coordinator and manages all of the scheduling for volunteers at Good Sam. Her email is
lisa_bryan@trihealth.com. She placed me in the Emergency Department and is willing to accommodate to my needs and
times in order for me to contribute to the hospital and get my own maximum benefit. I plan to utilize her as a resource and
take opportunities to talk to her and find out what else is going on in the hospital. Whenever I see her in her office, I will
try to have a conversation with her although she is almost certainly engaged in something else. She knows all that I need
to know and good advice in order to be a successful volunteer and potential hospital employee.

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Advisor Feedback
Must Include:

Required Revisions:

Effective:

Experience advisor name and contact

information
Description of why advisor was selected
Specific plans to engage with advisor

3. Connection to Learning Outcomes

List 3 learning outcomes from any thematic area(s). Provide specific activities you plan to engage in to help you make
progress towards the chosen learning outcomes. Describe how you expect each activity to help your progress. Include an
estimated time commitment for those activities.
One learning outcome is certainly giving back to the community through volunteering to develop a thorough
understanding of the world view, beliefs, and experiences community members. I will also be differentiating several ways
to contribute towards community goals of health and wellness. A third learning outcome is a leadership initiative to
develop strategies to identify and respond to challenges and obstacles. I hope to become a better communicator, leader,
and contributor to my community in order to serve the world better. Hopefully this experience provides me with a plethora
of new knowledge that will build my character and future.
As a volunteer at Good Sam, my activities would consist of a variety of smaller tasks. Namely greeting patients,
observing the waiting room, interacting with hospital staff and other tasks would constitute my time. Each of these will
take approximately the same amount of time of about twenty minutes per two hour session, and I will be volunteering two
hours a week.
Advisor Feedback
Must Include:

Required Revisions:

Effective:

3 learning outcomes explicitly identified

from any thematic area(s)
Examples of activities and explanation of
how each will assist the progress towards
the chosen learning outcome
Estimated time commitment for each
activity

4. Academic Resources Connected to the Learning Outcomes

List 1-2 academic resources you plan to use to enhance your understanding of the learning outcomes. Explain how each
resource connects to your learning outcome(s) and helps you execute your experience. Please include the title and
author/creator for each resource.
Note: Academic resources are professional works that can be used to assist your understanding of the topic. Some
examples are books, documentaries, videos, or research journals.
My biology textbook contains information that I can use during my self-designed experiment. Some of the biological
terms should be present in my weekly learnings. For example, someone might say something about sickle cell disease in
which I can relate to by picturing the stiff and crescent shaped blood cells. This biology textbook, a Campbell Biology
production by Jane B. Reece, Lisa A. Urry, Michael L. Cain, Steven A. Wasserman, and Peter V. Minorsky directly aids
with learning outcomes. All knowledge I gain about the human body comes from the textbook, and I will continue to learn
from the book. Terms used while volunteering will like be found in the book as well.

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Advisor Feedback
Must Include:

Required Revisions:

Effective:

1-2 academic resources connected to the

learning outcomes
Title and author of each resource
Description of how resources will help
make progress towards learning outcomes
and execution of experience

5. On-going Reflection
The on-going reflection should help you process the experience and progress toward your chosen learning outcomes.
Describe your method for reflecting throughout the experience. Indicate specific reflection questions/topics you plan to
use to guide your reflective process.
Note: A variety of methods can be used for on-going reflection. Some examples are videos, drawings, blogs, songs, and
journals. Reflection topics to consider include your ideas/insights about the experience, connection to other areas of
involvement, and your progress towards the learning outcomes.
I plan to reflect using a journal every 2 weeks or so and document my learnings in relation to my future and
learning outcomes. In the entries, I will relate how I am giving back to my community, what I like and dislike about my
experiences, compare them, and how the experiences both impact how I will respond to patients and situations in the
future. By the end of my experience when I make a decision at which hospital I will continue volunteering at, I will have
an extensive analysis of both hospitals and their compatibility with me and a diverse experience to enrich my life and
utilize for medical school applications.
Advisor Feedback
Must Include:

Required Revisions:

Effective:

Method for ongoing reflection

Reflection questions/topics clearly
specified

6. Sharing Your Learning

Describe how you plan to actively share what youve taken away from this experience with a targeted audience. Explain
why you chose this specific audience.
Note: While social media can be an effective platform for sharing, only posting on your personal learning portfolio or
social media account(s) does not reach a targeted audience.
One method to actively share my method is making a blog to showcase all that Ive gained from this experience.
Through this pathway, future employers, peers, and others in my social network can visualize what sort of tasks I have
been accomplishing and how I have gained from them.

Advisor Feedback
Must Include:
At least one method to actively share takeaways/learning from the experience

Required Revisions:

Effective:

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A specific audience and why the audience
was selected

7. Budget (if applicable)

Provide an itemized budget and indicate your source for cost information.
*If you are engaged in an unpaid internship or research, please indicate the number of weeks and hours per week you
plan to participate.
A budget is not applicable for this experience.

Advisor Feedback
Notes:
Detailed budget of expenditures with
sources to justify budget estimates
*Indicates the number of hours per week
and number of weeks of participation

Required Revisions:

Effective:

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THEMATIC AREA LEARNING OUTCOMES
Learning Outcomes for the Community Engagement Thematic Area:
By engaging in this thematic area, you will make progress towards learning how to

Identify and differentiate multiple ways to contribute towards the development or

achievement of the communitys goals.
Develop a thorough understanding of the world view, beliefs, experiences, selfconsciousness, or history of community members through collaboration.
Articulate the purpose of service on a social issue or public policy and how service
mutually enhances individual growth and the common good.
Explain how education, advocacy, mobilization, or public policy can influence social
issues and transform communities.

Learning Outcomes for the Creativity Thematic Area:

By engaging in this thematic area, you will make progress towards learning how to

Discover new techniques to gain knowledge, consider options, make new connections,
and ask questions.
Explore a new creative competency/medium or seek new ways to engage an existing
competency/medium.
Understand and optimize the use of people, technology, physical resources or community
in a creative process.
Articulate the broader significance of a creative project and the value of its contributions.

Learning Outcomes for the Global Studies Thematic Area:

By engaging in this thematic area, you will make progress towards learning how to

Develop practical travel skills that promote safe, stimulating, and productive travel
throughout your life.
Summarize the interconnectedness of geography, history, cultural traits and world issues.
Articulate the interdependence of professional fields to address current and impending
global issues such as technology, the environment, human rights, or politics.
Demonstrate an understanding of cultural diversity by acknowledging the impact of their
own identity and the experience of social norms, customs, or beliefs that are different
from their own.
Demonstrate a sense of empathy, respect, and appreciation for others to build meaningful
cross-cultural collaborations toward mutual growth and prosperity.

Learning Outcomes for the Leadership Thematic Area:

By engaging in this thematic area, you will make progress towards learning how to

Formulate and manage a shared vision and develop goals towards its achievement.
Motivate and collaborate effectively with others towards completion of shared projects or
goals.
Develop strategies to identify and respond to challenges and obstacles.
Identify personal strengths and areas of growth and evaluate opportunities to maximize
skills and abilities.
Synthesize the current trends related to a specific issue or field and evaluate how
thought-leaders are currently addressing them.

Learning Outcomes for the Research Thematic Area:

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By engaging in this thematic area, you will make progress towards learning how to

Demonstrate the ability to locate, interpret, and critically evaluate primary sources
appropriate to field.
Identify and apply appropriate methods to collect and organize data for analysis.
Analyze and interpret the meaning of results.
Produce dissemination appropriate to the field in order to share the results or impact
of the research.
Articulate the broader significance of the research project and its relationship to other
fields, research and ideas.